Ejipura flyover: HC orders FIR against contractor

The high court has ordered the BBMP to file an FIR against Simplex Infrastructures Limited, the company building the inordinately delayed Ejipura flyover, and asked the state government to cancel the contract.

A division bench headed by Chief Justice Ritu Raj Awasthi passed the order on Thursday, noting that the company neither responded to the notices issued by the BBMP nor represented itself in the court.

The court was hearing a PIL petition filed by Adinarayan Shetty, a senior citizen from Koramangala, who stated that the delay in building the 2.5-km-long flyover from Ejipura Junction to Kendriya Sadan in Koramangala had caused huge losses.

While the flyover was supposed to be ready by November 4, 2019, the BBMP told the court only 44 per cent of the work has been completed so far.

Appearing for the BBMP, senior advocate Uday Holla said the firm did not respond to the two notices that asked it to complete the project. The notices warned of terminating the contract if the work was not completed. After the company failed to respond, the BBMP wrote to the Urban Development Department seeking permission to terminate the contract, Holla added.

The bench was also informed that the company had not made an appearance before the court even after being served the notice.

“We prima facie find that it is because of the fourth respondent (the company) that the delay has been caused in completion of the project and the construction of flyover could not be completed. The public money has been involved in the project and the people at large have been put to inconvenience due to the delay. We, therefore, direct the second respondent (BBMP) to lodge (an) FIR against the fourth respondent for the misappropriation of funds and take necessary steps against the fourth respondent by cancelling the contract,” the bench said.

The court directed the government to give permission within a week to cancel the contract. “The second respondent shall thereafter take appropriate steps for completion of the project by its own means or by engaging any other agency. The project shall be completed expeditiously in a time-bound manner,” the bench said and directed the BBMP to update it on March 14.

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